In the 1990s and the
first years of this century, a regular fall in emissions of all main air
pollutants was observed in Poland,
particularly of sulphur dioxide and nitrous oxide. This fall was largely
associated with the restructuring and modernisation of the energy and industrial
sectors, and improvements in the quality of coal. Since 2003, emissions of the
majority of pollutants have been comparable or, as in the case of sulphur
dioxide, emissions have fallen year by year, but not to the same degree as in
the 1990s (Fig. 5).

It is
worth pointing out that the systematic development of the Polish economy in
terms of GDP has not resulted in an increase in atmospheric emissions. This is
the result of the increasing use of environmentally friendly technologies (Fig. 6).

The effect
of balancing the environmental impact of dynamic economic development by
implementing modern technological and technical solutions is particularly
expressed in transport. Over the past decade, approximately 6.5 million
vehicles have been registered in Poland, but this has not translated
into increased emissions in this sector (Fig. 7).

At the same time,
increasing living standards in Poland
and growing environmental awareness among the general public mean that people
are more willing to use environmentally friendly methods in their households.
The growing amount of environmental data and information, and its increasing
accessibility, play an important role in raising environmental awareness and
shaping environmentally friendly behaviour.